ABSTRACT
Horsegram (Macrotyloma uniflorum) (Lam.) Verdc (Family: Fabaceae) is one of the lesser known beans. It is known as poor men’s and a crop of poor resource is widely grown in India in almost 200–700 mm rainfall situations at a temperature range of 20––35°C. Horse gram is an important arid legume and generally grown without agronomic and plant protection inputs. However, due to somewhat congenial situations with high humidity and appropriate temperature prevailing in northern hilly tracts and southern high rainfall zone, diseases may appear. Anthracnose is one of the most important diseases in various leguminous crops, viz., cowpea, soybean, French bean, faba bean, etc., including horsegram. Powdery mildew is an important disease causing considerable yield loss proportional to the disease severity and the stage at which it occurs. Development of rust resistant varieties and adjusting the sowing dates of the crop to avoid severe infections of the plant in the field may help considerably in reaping better harvest.
